We’re starting to think about our holiday menus: Thanksgiving and Christmas are the first to come to mind. The meals for these holidays should all have one thing in common—a vegetarian side dish (or two). And who could possibly go without the quintessential sweet potato dish!?

Rather than coating sweet potatoes with marshmallows, we’re lightning them up a bit with a favorite around our household: Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Dips Mix. Quick and easy to use, the creamy blend of herbs and spices flavor the potatoes beautifully, creating the perfect light side dish without the hassle of fumbling with zillions of spice bottles.

Tired of candied sweet potatoes as your go-to holiday side dish? This roasted & seasoned recipe will spice things up this year!

By Valentina Kenney Wein

Published: November 17, 2014

Prep Time: 35 min

Cook time: 45 min

Servings: 9

Ingredients:

Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Dips Mix: 2 tablespoons, divided

sweet potatoes: 6 (approximately 8 ounces each)

unsalted butter, melted: 3 tablespoons

olive oil: 3 tablespoons, divided

brown sugar: 2 teaspoons, divided

brown onion, thinly sliced: 2 cups

fresh Italian parsley, washed, dried, and finely chopped: 2 teaspoons

fresh Italian parsley, washed and dried: a few sprigs for garnish

Directions:

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F, and adjust a rack to the center.

Step 2: Line a baking sheet with foil and set it aside.

Step 3: Wash and dry the sweet potatoes. Then use a very sharp knife to make approximately ⅛-inch slices, horizontally, along each potato. (The slices should go about ¾ of the way down---be careful not to cut all the way through!)

Step 4: Once you've made the slices in all of the potatoes, place them on the foil-lined baking sheet and set aside.

Step 5: In a small bowl, mix the melted butter with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 1 teaspoon of the brown sugar, and 1 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon of the Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Dips Mix.

Step 6: Mix until smooth and then drizzle about half of it between the 6 potatoes, rubbing it in as much as possible.

Step 7: Place the baking sheet in the preheated 425 degree oven and roast until the potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes. About halfway through the roasting time, remove the baking sheet from the oven and drizzle the remaining butter mixture over the potatoes---using a knife, fork, or your fingers (if they're not too hot for you) to open the slices a bit more, allow the mixture to go inside the potatoes. And also at this time, sprinkle them with the remaining 1 teaspoon of brown sugar.

Step 8: While the potatoes are roasting, coat the bottom of a medium-sized skillet with about 1½ tablespoons of the remaining olive oil. Add the onions to the skillet and place it over medium-high heat.

Step 9: Stirring frequently, sauté the onions until they are nicely caramelized, about 15 minutes. (Don't be surprised at how much they shrink.)

Step 10: Add the remaining 1½ teaspoons of olive oil, the remaining 2 teaspoons of the Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® Dips Mix, and the finely chopped parsley to the onions and mix. Set aside.

Step 11: Remove the now tender potatoes from the oven and use a spoon to drizzle the butter from the baking sheet back into the potatoes.

Step 12: Divide the caramelized onions between the 6 potatoes and serve.

Valentina's passion is food, and she loves spending time in her "kitchen retreat," as she refers to that room in her house. Valentina develops recipes for creative and comforting food that works perfectly for casual entertaining. Both her recipes and food photography have been featured many times on popular food websites and in print. Valentina shares her beautiful photographs as well as new and interesting recipes almost daily on her blog, Cooking on the Weekends.

Outside the worlds of food and photography, Valentina's other passion is her family (including her two young boys, her husband and her puppy, Maple.)

To learn more about Valentina and where her work has been featured, visit her About page at Cooking On The Weekends.